barelyawake wrote:I love John Wall, and I was the first on the "tank for the next Kobe - John Wall - bandwagon." But, there keep being small indications that he's not a franchise player. Top PG yes, but not a franchise player. First was the dancing. Then, there was the lack of a killer instinct. Now, there's this.
I'll be told it's psycho babble BS, but I think it's all part of the same thing. I could write a long, long post on the subject. I'll simply say it's exceptionally rare for a PG to win a championship as the franchise player. It takes a certain personality and a certain level of skill. Wall's personality concerns me. I don't see the "Eye of the Tiger."
My conclusion? We still need a franchise player. I thought we needed a Robin for Batman. We need a Batman for Robin. I hope I'm wrong.
Wall plays the game at high speed. He's a great athlete. His passing is much better than I thought it would be. Other than passing better, he is almost exactly what I thought he would be prior to when the Wizards drafted him.
I am one of the few on this site that said he's not going to be that good right away. I kept hearing best PG ever stuff, and better than Kidd stuff, and Dwyane Wade comparisons. I think Wall will do well to be in the class of Rondo and Westbrook over the next 2 seasons.
His defense was terrible this past season. He shot the three fairly well, scored fairly well, and passed well to very well. John turned it over at times, got in a rush at times, didn't play with a motor at both ends, lacked confidence in his outside shot, and suffered injury issues as a rookie. Wall was IMO an average NBA PG his first season. (Which is good for a 20-yr old). I like Wall's dedication and athleticism and manners to older people and the media. I'm just not sold that he's great. I think he's merely very good. (HOWEVER, in an up-tempo game the dude is potentially GREAT.)
If his outside shooting and defense improve significantly, the John Wall will prove me wrong and be more than very good.
Tre Johnson is the future of the Wizards.